Gaseous treatments, generally combined with cooling, applied to different fruit and vegetable species to optimize their survival after picking, are now highly diversified and, as a rule, use nitrogen, carbon dioxide, oxygen, carbon monoxide or sulfur dioxide. It has also been proposed to use mixtures of nitrogen monoxide and oxygen in the processing of meat and milk derived food products.
The preservation of fresh edible plant products presents specific problems due especially to their respiration, natural ethylene emission and propensity to be attacked by numerous fungal strains. Moreover, especially for fruits, the preservation of the organoleptic qualities and outside appearance are very important parameters for consumers.